Christ Died For *Sinners*!
Romans 5:6-11
6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— 8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. 10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. 11 More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.
Paul has been arguing that everyone—Jew and Gentile—has been enslaved to sin and death. Like the children of Israel in Egypt, we were in bondage and unable to free ourselves. How did the Lord free the slaves in Egypt? By coming with power in the terrible Tenth Plague and passing-over everyone who placed the blood of a sacrificial lamb on his doorway. When it comes to everyone enslaved to sin and death, how would the Lord free them?
By sending His own Son to die as a sacrificial offering!
Paul will explain later starting in chapter 8 exactly how the death of Jesus freed people from sin and death, but here he wants the Romans to reflect on just how amazing it is that Jesus died for people who rejected him:
6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— 8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. [5:6-8]
A mother might sacrifice herself for her own child, but would a mother sacrifice herself for a violent terrorist? Paul’s point is that the death of Jesus is a remarkable picture of the love of God.
It is one of the most remarkable sentences in the entire Bible—Christ died for sinners!
Suffering → Endurance → Character → Hope
Romans 5:1-5
5 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
Imagine the Hebrew slaves in Egypt, in misery because of their bondage. This is what life is like for everyone, apart from Christ. Paul has been explaining how both Jews and Gentiles are enslaved to sin and living in misery. But Jesus died for sinful humanity and everyone who trusts Him will be freed from slavery to sin and death. Those who trust Jesus have “peace.” Imagine the Hebrews on the far side of the Red Sea, freed forever from Pharaoh. Just like the Hebrews in the wilderness, those of us who have been freed are eager to enter Promised Land where God’s glory shines and everything is renewed. We rejoice at that hope:
We rejoice in hope of the glory of God [5:2]
But we’re not there yet. Life can still be difficult. Those freed Hebrew slaves still had times of trial in the wilderness before they entered the Promised Land. But, before them constantly was the glory of God, leading the way:
21 And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night. 22 The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did not depart from before the people. [Exodus 13:21-22]
So, the dark night meant that the Lord’s fire before them shined even brighter.
Paul says it is the same way for us today, that even the hard times can be good:
[W]e rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. [5:3-5]
Suffering can produce endurance;
Endurance can produce strong character;
Character can sustain hope;
Hope is not an empty feeling, but a sure thing, because:
God has given us His Holy Spirit, and He makes God’s love real to us so that even now—when things are hard—we know that everything is going to be okay.
Suffering→endurance→character→hope.
There is an idea (recently expressed by the author G. Michael Hopf, though the idea has been around for centuries):
Hard times create strong men;
Strong men create good times;
Good times create weak men;
Weak men create hard times.
It is of course an oversimplification, but there is obvious truth in the idea that difficult circumstances can produce people of strong character.
Paul explains to the Romans that those who are in Christ can even be grateful for sufferings because, through the grace of God, suffering can be used by God to produce hope that will not disappoint.
What if the Lord is allowing difficulty in your life for your own good? What if what God wants to produce in you is hope?
Faith Is Trusting When Your Circumstances Are Bad
Romans 4:13-25
13 For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith. 14 For if it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void. 15 For the law brings wrath, but where there is no law there is no transgression.
16 That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring—not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all, 17 as it is written, “I have made you the father of many nations”—in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.
18 In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been told, “So shall your offspring be.” 19 He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah's womb. 20 No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, 21 fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. 22 That is why his faith was “counted to him as righteousness.” 23 But the words “it was counted to him” were not written for his sake alone, 24 but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, 25 who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.
Paul wants his readers to understand that God’s promise to Abraham came before the Law was given to Israel, which means the promise does not depend on the keeping of the Law. Rather, it depends on faith.
Faith is not believing in the miraculous—Jesus walking on water, e.g.— faith is trusting God when the circumstances around you are bad. God told Abraham that he would give Abraham and Sarah a child, despite the fact that they were very old. To his credit, Abraham trusted that God would fulfill that promise. In the same way, we trust that the Father will save us through Jesus. Abraham is our great ancestor in the faith because of how he trusted God.
Faith is trusting God when the circumstances around you are bad.
How will you need to exercise faith today?
Abraham: The Model Believer
Romans 4:1-12
4 What then shall we say was gained by Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh? 2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. 3 For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.” 4 Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. 5 And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness, 6 just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works:
7 “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven,
and whose sins are covered;
8 blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin.”
9 Is this blessing then only for the circumcised, or also for the uncircumcised? For we say that faith was counted to Abraham as righteousness. 10 How then was it counted to him? Was it before or after he had been circumcised? It was not after, but before he was circumcised. 11 He received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. The purpose was to make him the father of all who believe without being circumcised, so that righteousness would be counted to them as well, 12 and to make him the father of the circumcised who are not merely circumcised but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.
In Romans chapter 4, Paul makes a dense argument, explaining how Abraham is actually an illustration of what he has been saying about faith. I know this is hard stuff, but it’s worth it!
To understand that point Paul makes with Abraham, we have to go back and be reminded of how the biblical story plays out:
Genesis 3→Adam and Eve rebel against the Lord, bringing death and destruction into the world.
Genesis 4-11→Humanity spirals deeper and deeper into death and destruction, and human idolatry culminates in the Tower of Babel. The result is that humanity is scattered.
Genesis 12→God starts the plan to rescue all of humanity by making a promise—a covenant—to Abraham. Abraham’s family will be the means by which the entire world will be rescued and blessed.
Genesis 15→God renews his promise to Abraham, and Abraham believes in the promise.
Genesis 17→Abraham is given a mark in his flesh—circumcision—as a sign of the covenant.
Exodus 19→Abraham’s descendants—the Israelites—are given a new covenant at Mt. Sinai that is meant to mark Israel as the covenant people.
Israel fails to uphold the covenant, and finds itself in exile.
Jesus obediently keeps the covenant and dies as the perfect Israelite on behalf of His people, thereby bringing blessing to the entire world.
So, Paul looks back at Abraham and sees Abraham as the model believer and the founder of faith because Abraham trusts God even before he receives the mark of circumcision. So, circumcision is not the way you become part of God’s covenant people—faith in the heart is how you become part of God’s covenant people.
So, Paul’s point is that Abraham is the spiritual ancestor of everyone who puts their trust in God.
The Bible says that Abraham trusted God and it was his faith that made him righteous and that was before Abraham was circumcised. Paul’s point: Abraham is the spiritual father of everyone—both Jew and Greek—who puts faith in God. You don’t have to be circumcised in the flesh to be part of Abraham’s family, which means Gentiles who trust Jesus are now part of God’s covenant people.
Why did God do this? Well, Paul explains that when you are paid wages, your employer isn’t giving you a gift, but merely what you are owed. In contrast, when God just blesses someone with grace it’s a free gift and not some obligation that God was forced to provide.
The point: we who have been justified by faith in Jesus ought to be so grateful!
What Righteousness Means
Romans 3:21-31
21 But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.
27 Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? By a law of works? No, but by the law of faith. 28 For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law. 29 Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, 30 since God is one—who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith. 31 Do we then overthrow the law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold the law.
Paul states that the righteousness of God has now been revealed in a surprising way—not through the Law, although the Law and the Prophets (i.e., the entire Old Testament) foretold it would happen. No, what is amazing is that God is doing something new by saving people through faith!
A key idea in Romans is summed up by the word “righteousness.” The term has several overlapping meanings; here is a good way to understand righteousness:
Righteousness – the “rightness” of God, rooted in God’s identity, also God’s “making right” the wrong things of the world, also the characteristic of someone whom God has “made right” and is conforming to God’s standard.
Paul here says that all it takes to be made right by God is to trust—“have faith in”—in Jesus. Gentile or Jew—it doesn’t matter: each needs to be saved from sin and each can be. God’s righteousness is such that He doesn’t hold people’s sins against them but forgives them because of the sacrificial death of Jesus.
Paul says that none of us who is saved should boast about it because we did nothing to deserve or earn it—we only just trusted in Jesus. And again, this salvation is for both Jews and Greeks. And because Jews are saved through faith, this doesn’t mean the Law was useless; on the contrary, the Law shows that people need to be saved, because they are unable to keep it.
"Their Throat Is An Open Grave"
Romans 3:9-20
9 What then? Are we Jews any better off? No, not at all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, 10 as it is written:
“None is righteous, no, not one;
11 no one understands;
no one seeks for God.
12 All have turned aside; together they have become worthless;
no one does good,
not even one.”
13 “Their throat is an open grave;
they use their tongues to deceive.”
“The venom of asps is under their lips.”
14 “Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.”
15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood;
16 in their paths are ruin and misery,
17 and the way of peace they have not known.”
18 “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
19 Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. 20 For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.
Paul, speaking to his imaginary Jewish interlocutor, makes his point again:
Just being Jewish doesn’t count for anything, because both Jews and Gentiles are sinful and need to be saved.
Then, Paul quotes from the Old Testament—mainly the Psalms—to emphasize the point he made above—people are sinful—and to show that this idea isn’t original with him but is in fact what the Bible has already been teaching.
Again, just because the Jews have the Law doesn’t mean that they are better than other people. In fact, the Law proves just how sinful they are by showing clearly that they are not abiding by it nor keeping its terms:
19 Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. 20 For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin. [3:19-20]
Paul is continuing to make his case about how sinful all of humanity it, so he can show just how amazing is the grace of God in Jesus Christ.
Keep reading!
What's The Point Of Being A Jew?
Romans 3:1-8
3 Then what advantage has the Jew? Or what is the value of circumcision? 2 Much in every way. To begin with, the Jews were entrusted with the oracles of God. 3 What if some were unfaithful? Does their faithlessness nullify the faithfulness of God? 4 By no means! Let God be true though every one were a liar, as it is written, “That you may be justified in your words, and prevail when you are judged.” 5 But if our unrighteousness serves to show the righteousness of God, what shall we say? That God is unrighteous to inflict wrath on us? (I speak in a human way.) 6 By no means! For then how could God judge the world? 7 But if through my lie God's truth abounds to his glory, why am I still being condemned as a sinner? 8 And why not do evil that good may come?—as some people slanderously charge us with saying. Their condemnation is just.
“Okay, smart guy,” replies Paul’s imaginary Jewish interlocutor, “if Jews stand condemned in sin just as much as Gentiles, then what’s the point of being a Jew? Why did God choose Israel as His people?”
Well, says Paul, for one thing, the Jews were given God’s Word (“the oracles of God”). And even if some Israelites were unfaithful, that doesn’t change the character of God. In fact, God is so good and committed to His promises, that the more His people sinned, the more God remained faithful. Their unrighteousness showed just how righteous God is.
“Okay,” says Paul’s interlocutor, “but if my sin shows God’s goodness, then couldn’t you say that God owes me for making Him look good? Couldn’t you say that it is actually good for Israel to sin, then, so that God can show his grace and righteousness? Shouldn’t we just sin more so God looks better? Why are we getting in trouble for making God look good?”
5 But if our unrighteousness serves to show the righteousness of God, what shall we say? That God is unrighteous to inflict wrath on us? (I speak in a human way.) [3:5]
Paul says that anyone who thinks that way should be criticized, because that way of thinking is really twisted. After all, if God rewarded sin, then God would never right any wrongs or make any judgments. And that kind of God is no kind of God at all. Paul says that if he actually taught that people should sin more and thereby make God look better, then he would be right to be criticized:
7 But if through my lie God's truth abounds to his glory, why am I still being condemned as a sinner? 8 And why not do evil that good may come?—as some people slanderously charge us with saying. Their condemnation is just. [3:7-8]
So far in his letter, Paul has explained how idolatry—worshipping the creation rather than the Creator—has led the Gentiles deep into sin. They are, in fact, in so deep that they will need to be rescued. He then goes on to explain how the Jews—who should have known better—also were idolatrous and disobedient. Paul’s main point in Romans chapters 2-3 is that the Jews are no better off than the Gentiles but are also totally sinful and in need of God’s grace.
We’re no different.
What Was The Point Of The Law?
Romans 2:25-29
25 For circumcision indeed is of value if you obey the law, but if you break the law, your circumcision becomes uncircumcision. 26 So, if a man who is uncircumcised keeps the precepts of the law, will not his uncircumcision be regarded as circumcision? 27 Then he who is physically uncircumcised but keeps the law will condemn you who have the written code and circumcision but break the law. 28 For no one is a Jew who is merely one outwardly, nor is circumcision outward and physical. 29 But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter. His praise is not from man but from God.
The Lord chose Abraham (and then Abraham’s family, Israel) to be His representatives to the nations, to teach the nations how to live well and to bring the nations back to the Lord. The Lord made a covenant with Israel, and the sign of that covenant was circumcision—a physical mark in the flesh. Circumcision was the sign that Israel was set apart through a covenant promise.
Paul here addresses an imaginary Jewish interlocutor who believes that circumcision alone is what matters to make people righteous. Paul says that, yes, circumcision is a sign of God’s promise, but that what matters is what circumcision signified, not merely the physical mark in the flesh. That is, it is through the keeping of the Law that Israel shows its covenant status—which was what circumcision was meant to signify—not just circumcision alone. So, Paul points out that just being Jewish doesn’t count for anything—that circumcision, the sign of the covenant and of one’s membership in Israel—is a worthless sign if you aren’t actually obedient. What matters is obedience. So, someone who is uncircumcised —i.e., a Gentile—but obedient is actually righteous, whereas someone who is circumcised by disobedient is unrighteous.
26 So, if a man who is uncircumcised keeps the precepts of the law, will not his uncircumcision be regarded as circumcision? 27 Then he who is physically uncircumcised but keeps the law will condemn you who have the written code and circumcision but break the law. 28 For no one is a Jew who is merely one outwardly, nor is circumcision outward and physical. 29 But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter. [2:26-29]
In other words, just saying, “Well, I’m an Israelite, so I can’t be condemned for my sins” won’t work.
How does this dynamic play out today?
Many Christians have believed the lie that they can claim to be Christians but live completely disobedient lives. Paul is here offering a warning to us that what matters is not what we say but what we do. This, by the way, is exactly the same point that Jesus makes in Matthew’s Gospel about Judgment Day:
31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’
41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ 44 Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ 45 Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ 46 And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” [Matthew 25:21-46]
Where are you living in disobedience today?
The Jews Are Not Better Than The Gentiles
Romans 2:17-24
17 But if you call yourself a Jew and rely on the law and boast in God 18 and know his will and approve what is excellent, because you are instructed from the law; 19 and if you are sure that you yourself are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, 20 an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of children, having in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth— 21 you then who teach others, do you not teach yourself? While you preach against stealing, do you steal? 22 You who say that one must not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? 23 You who boast in the law dishonor God by breaking the law. 24 For, as it is written, “The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”
Paul has just spoken of the coming Judgment Day, at which everyone will be judged. Now, he responds to an imaginary Jewish interlocutor who says, “We’re fine, Paul, because we have the Law, and so we’re better than other people and don’t have to worry about judgment.”
(Remember, “the Law” is a shorthand way Paul has of referring to the entire Old Testament and specifically the Torah, the first five books of the Old Testament that God gave Moses in the wilderness so that the Israelites would know how to live as God’s people.)
Paul’s has just told us:
• It’s not having or hearing the Law that matters, but actually being
obedient to God;
• Plus, the Gentiles have the law of their own conscience, so they actually are not ignorant of God's command.
Here, he goes on to talk about how the Jews have indeed had the Law, but that they didn’t abide by it!
17 But if you call yourself a Jew and rely on the law and boast in God 18 and know his will and approve what is excellent, because you are instructed from the law; 19 and if you are sure that you yourself are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, 20 an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of children, having in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth— 21 you then who teach others, do you not teach yourself? While you preach against stealing, do you steal? 22 You who say that one must not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? 23 You who boast in the law dishonor God by breaking the law. 24 For, as it is written, “The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.” [2:17-24]
Paul’s point: God gave the Ten Commandments and the other laws to teach Israel how to live well, but Israel ended up just committing the very same sins that the Law forbade.
You who say that one must not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? [2:22]
Israel was meant to be a blessing to the nations and to point the Gentiles back to God, but the result of Jewish disobedience is that the Gentiles are farther away from God than ever:
23 You who boast in the law dishonor God by breaking the law. 24 For, as it is written, “The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.” [2:23-24]
We modern Christians need to reflect long and hard on what Paul is saying here. One of the surest ways to discredit the Lord is through sin in the church. When we who profess the name of Christ live just as sinfully as our unbelieving neighbors, we become a stumbling block to them, because they don’t see the Gospel as making any everyday difference in our lives.
Today, where do you need to repent—turn around, change—so that you better represent Jesus to the world?
Judged By What You Do With What You Have Been Given
Romans 2:12-16
12 For all who have sinned without the law will also perish without the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law. 13 For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified. 14 For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. 15 They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them 16 on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus.
“The Law” is Paul’s shorthand way of referring to the entire Old Testament, specifically the Torah, the first five books of the Old Testament that God gave Moses in the wilderness so that the Israelites would know how to live as God’s people.
So, the Gentiles are those “without the Law” and the Jews are those “under the Law.” Paul’s point here is that, both Gentiles and Jews will be judged by what they actually do with what they know. The Gentiles have their conscience—“the Law…written on their hearts”—and the Jews have the Torah; what matters is what people do with what they’ve been given.
So, Paul tells the Romans that on Judgment Day, all people will be judged by Jesus, regardless of their ethnic status.
It is tempting for us to want to know about other people—“What will happen to this person, or that person?” What Paul reminds me here, however, is that the only thing that matters is what I am doing with what I have been given. I’ll trust other people to God’s justice and mercy— how am I responding to what I know about God?
What about you?
God Judges Everyone, Without Favoritism
Romans 2:6-11
6 He will render to each one according to his works: 7 to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; 8 but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury. 9 There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek, 10 but glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek. 11 For God shows no partiality.
Judgment Day is for everyone, and no one avoids it. Paul here lays out the basic way that God’s judgment will work:
People who do the right thing will receive eternal life;
People who do the wrong thing will face God’s wrath.
The Jews will be judged first, and then the Gentiles.
Both Jews and Gentiles will be judged, “For God shows no partiality,” i.e., God judges everyone, without favoritism.
Paul will go on to show that, in fact, everyone will need to be saved because no one is actually able to keep God’s law.
The Good News? Jesus came to save everyone who believes in His name.
I Judge Myself By My Intentions, and I Judge You By Your Actions
Romans 2:1-5
2 Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. 2 We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. 3 Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God? 4 Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? 5 But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God's righteous judgment will be revealed.
Paul closed chapter 1 with a long indictment of pagan sin. The Gentiles come off looking really badly!
But then Paul pivots and holds up a mirror to an as-yet-unspecified, imaginary Jewish interlocutor. Paul says, “Don’t think you are any better, Mr. Jewish guy.”
Yes, the Jews had God’s Law revealed to them at Mt. Sinai, but how were they actually abiding by it? After condemning Gentile sinfulness, Paul will now pivot and show how Jews aren’t actually any better.
Paul’s point here is one that I find convicting: we tend to judge ourselves by our intentions and other people by their actions—we give ourselves a pass for the very same sins that we point out in others.
He then says (v. 4) that if your sins haven’t yet caught up with you, that’s only because God is showing you forbearance because he wants to give you time to repent!
Sooner or later, every person will face judgment; no one gets to avoid it.
Doesn't This List Sum Up What You See in the World?
Romans 1:28-32
28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. 29 They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 Though they know God's righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.
Although Paul has just been explaining how sexual sin is a result of pagan idolatry, sexual sin is not the only form of sin with which he is concerned; rather, the reason Paul highlights sexual sin is that it is for him an excellent example of the consequence of pagan idolatry. Here, he goes further, and it is quite the indictment—buckle up:
28 Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. 29 They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; 31 they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. 32 Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them. [1:28-32 NIV]
This is some list—hard to see what other forms sin might take that Paul doesn’t here condemn.
The point: the Gentiles (I’ve been calling them pagans) have no hope apart from the Gospel. Their idolatry has caused them to be utterly corrupted by sin. (Paul will spend the next two chapters explaining how the Jews are not actually any better.)
Consider that last paragraph of chapter 1—doesn’t it pretty much sum up the state of the world today in many places?
The Good News—which Paul is building towards—is that Jesus died for the pagan peoples even as they worshipped the dark powers and He will bring them out into the light of God. Thanks be to God!
the Vicious Cycle of Sexual Sin
Romans 1:24-27
24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25 because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen. 26 For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; 27 and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.
One of the consequences of idolatry is sexual sin. Sexual sin is the worship of the human body rather than the Creator of the human body; sexual sin is what happens when we want pleasure on our own terms, that which is right in our own eyes. Because idolatry is a both a result of foolish rebellion and a cause of further foolishness, Paul sees “unnatural” sexual activity—sexual activity outside of the covenant of marriage, founded on the male/female union—as the paradigmatic example of pagan sin. Paul is talking about homosexual activity here, but I think the implication is larger than that and includes all forms of sexual sin. (Pornography is about the purest form of idolatry that there is, because it is about the focused desire of another person’s image.) The brokenness that results from sexual sin is both its consequence and the proof that it’s wrong. There is a reason why so many of today’s cultural arguments have to do with sex, and that's because sex is fundamental to human life. If we get sex wrong, it deforms everything else; sexual sin deforms the human person in a fundamental way. I always say that one of the consequences of sexual sin is that it retards human maturity. And unrepentant sexual sin hardens the heart, making it harder and harder for a person to hear the Gospel and repent.
But let us not forget Paul’s thesis statement earlier in the chapter:
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. [1:16]
The Gospel is more powerful than sin, and there is no sinner that cannot be saved.
Who seems so far gone that only a miracle would save him or her? Pray for that person!
Paul Goes After My Ancestors
Romans 1:18-23
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. 21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.
My ancestors all came from northwest Europe. So, at the time of Jesus, my fathers and mothers were prowling the great primeval forests of Germania and Gaul, painted in pagan warpaint and killing Romans, worshipping their false gods around druidic blazes. And Paul explains why they had no excuse for their sin and violence.
It was obvious to all ancient people that God (or gods) made the world, and if God made the world, then it follows there are right and wrong ways to behave. Paul’s point: even ignorant pagans knew that they often behaved in wicked ways. “A law written on their hearts,” or, as we would put it today, “conscience.” In other words, they couldn’t say, “It’s not our fault—God never gave us the Ten Commandments.” Paul’s reply, “You knew enough, and what you knew you didn’t keep.”
Idolatry is worshipping something created rather than the Creator. We worship what we think will give us what we don’t have; worship is our focused attention on what we most desire.
And note the terrifying result of idolatry:
21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. [1:21]
Paul says that idolatry leads to a darkened mind. This gets at what Jesus meant when He said,
12 Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. [Matthew 13:12]
In other words, the first and most important decision is to honor God as the true source of light and life, and all other decisions flow downstream from that first decision. If you get that right, then you move in one direction, but if you get that wrong, you’ll be more and more wrong.
Imagine taking the wrong fork on a river journey—every moment that passes takes you farther away from your destination.
Lord, save us from idolatry today, and keep us from having darkened hearts. Amen.
Paul's Thesis Statement
Romans 1:16-17
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”
Romans 1:16-17 is Paul’s thesis statement for the entire letter:
• The Gospel has power to save anyone, regardless of ethnic status;
• The Gospel came first to the Jews, God’s people. Many Jews believed in Jesus, and they were saved;
• Then, in God’s plan, the Gospel came to the Gentiles, and any Gentiles who believed were likewise saved;
• The Gospel shows God’s righteousness. Righteousness is an important idea for Paul, and it’s a word that has a whole range of meanings.
• Righteousness is the “rightness” of God, rooted in God’s identity; it is also God’s “making right” the wrong things of the world; it is also characteristic of someone whom God has “made right”and is conforming to God’s standard. God’s righteousness is revealed and attained through faith, i.e., through trusting God.
This is a dense theological statement! Paul will spend the rest of his letter explaining and unpacking these two verses.
In the meantime, it’s worth remarking on that beautiful word in v. 16: everyone.
Paul says that the Gospel has power to save everyone.
It is THE most powerful thing in the world—the Gospel.
Do you know someone who seems lost?
Pray specifically for that person today to be saved by the Gospel.
The Immediacy of Paul's Words
Romans 1:8-15
8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed in all the world. 9 For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I mention you 10 always in my prayers, asking that somehow by God's will I may now at last succeed in coming to you. 11 For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you— 12 that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith, both yours and mine. 13 I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I have often intended to come to you (but thus far have been prevented), in order that I may reap some harvest among you as well as among the rest of the Gentiles. 14 I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. 15 So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.
Paul tells the Roman church (the majority of whose members he has never met) how much he prays and praises God for them. He has wanted for a long time to come visit them but was unable to do so, and he feels that he has something to offer them, though of course he knows that he would also be blessed just by spending time with them. He reminds them that he has a special mission to non-Jews—both the civilized “Greeks” and the uncivilized “barbarians”—to tell them about Jesus and invite them into the church.
Do Not Conform. Be Transformed.
What strikes me on reading this section is the immediacy of the words; it’s as if Paul is writing the letter to us, today, and not to ancient Romans 2,000 years ago.
But this is the power of Scripture—it is evergreen for God’s people.
Be committed to really studying these words, and they will change your life.
The World's Greatest Letter Begins With The World's Longest Introduction
We begin a new book today—Romans! Normally, our readings are assigned Monday-Friday, but since today is the first day of a new month, it seemed appropriate to kick off our Romans study today. Each day’s post will go live at 3:30 AM and—for those of you on my email list—will be emailed out at 4:00 AM.
The opening letter below appears in the print version of this reading guide. We include it here. (Today’s scripture reading can be found after the SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 1 header below.)
AROUND THE YEAR AD 57…
Around the year AD 57, a Christian missionary pastor and leader named Paul wrote a long letter to a network of house churches that had formed in Rome. Paul had never been to Rome (though he had met some of the Roman Christians previously), so he wrote his letter to introduce himself and his message to the Roman church.
Paul wrote his Letter to the Romans during one of his missionary journeys around the eastern Mediterranean. (He was probably in the city of Ephesus—which is in modern-day Turkey—when he wrote Romans.) At the period in which he wrote, Paul had been a missionary church planter for about twenty-five years, and he was planning to return to Jerusalem with a major financial gift he had collected from among his Gentile churches to give to the poor and persecuted Jewish church in Jerusalem. Paul intended that gift to be a sign of the unity of the church, since Paul understood that the church of Jesus was open to both Jews and Gentiles—“to all who believe.” [Romans 1:1] After delivering the gift, Paul’s plan was to stop off in Rome on his way to Spain, where he wanted to continue his church-planting ministry. By sending his letter, Paul hoped to make himself more familiar to the Roman Christians before visiting them in person.
WHAT IS PAUL’S LETTER TO THE ROMANS ABOUT?
Romans is a long, complex letter that is the result of Paul’s decades-long thought about Jesus and his missionary work for Jesus. In it, Paul explains what the Gospel means and how it should affect the everyday lives of the Roman Christians. In his letter, Paul is answering the question, “What does it mean that a Jewish man named Jesus was crucified and raised again?”
WHAT IS THE “GOSPEL”?
“Gospel” is the Old English translation of a Greek word that we transliterate as euangelion—pronounced “you-ahng-GELL-lee-on”—which means “good news” or “good tidings.” You know the story of the Battle of Marathon, how the messenger ran 26 miles to Athens to bring the breathless news of the great Greek victory over the Persians? The message he was bringing was euangelion—it is good news about something that has happened in the world, and it wasn’t originally a religious word, but a political word. In fact, the early Christians adopted it for their purposes because they understood that what had happened with Jesus was news about something amazing that had taken place, that it was (to quote the angel in Luke’s Gospel),
“Good news of great joy that will be for all the people!” [Luke 2:10]
This good news was carried from Jerusalem by followers of Jesus all over the world. When it came to the Anglo-Saxon people in what we now call England, the martyrs and missionaries translated it into the tongue of that place. They called their message “gospel.”
The early Christians called the Jesus news “gospel,” and they also came to call the documents that contained that news “Gospels.”
For Paul, the Gospel is the news that God has been faithful to His promises to Israel and that Jesus has carried those plans to fulfillment. Now, because of Jesus, the blessings of God are available to everyone who trusts God, both Jew and Gentile.
WHAT IS “ISRAEL”?
When Paul uses the term “Israel” he is not referring to the modern nation-state of Israel. Rather, when Paul uses the term, he is referring to the covenant people of God, descended from Abraham. Israel is God’s special people, and the story of Israel is told in what we call the Old Testament. The story of the Old Testament is that God chose one man—Abraham—and his family—Israel—to be His special representatives to the world. In shorthand, when Paul used the term “Israel,” he means “people of God.”
WHY IS THE OLD TESTAMENT KEY TO UNDERSTANDING ROMANS?
You cannot understand Romans if you don’t understand the story of Israel in the Old Testament. This is because Paul—who knows the Old Testament backwards and forwards—believes that Jesus is the fulfillment of everything the Old Testament was about, even and including undoing the effects of Adam’s sinful choice in Genesis chapter 3.
IF GOD KNEW THAT ISRAEL WOULD SIN, WHY DID HE CHOOSE THEM?
Paul wants the Romans to understand that the Lord did not make a mistake when He made Israel the chosen nation. Yes, Israel sinned, but Paul will explain in his letter how God was using Israel the entire time to prepare for Jesus and to bring blessing to the entire world.
SALVATION IS NOT ABOUT GOING TO HEAVEN WHEN YOU DIE
In his letter, Paul will explain that God’s ultimate plan is to fix everything that’s wrong with the world. Yes, the sacrificial death of Jesus means people can be forgiven of their sins and escape the consequence of their sins, but forgiveness is the means to the end God has in mind, not the end in itself. In fact, the end God is working towards is to restore humanity to its original, God-given position: to rule over Creation in God’s name. This is deep stuff, and Paul won’t get there until chapter 8. In this commentary, which I am calling Romans Part 1, we will cover chapters 1-7. (Chapter 8 will have to wait until Part 2.) Here, Paul is going to explain how all of humanity—including God’s people, Israel—was actually enslaved to sin, and that Jesus came to save everyone who would believe, both Jews and Gentiles. By doing what no one else was able to do, Jesus permanently defeated the power of sin and death and has inaugurated the New Creation that God is working towards.
Romans Part 1 will not be an easy read, but it will be worth it.
WHY READ ROMANS?
Because Reading Romans Will Help You Know God’s Will for Your Life
In Romans 12:1-2, Paul says that if we want to know God’s will for our lives, we need to have our minds transformed:
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. [12:2]
We are all affected by ideas, and the way to transform your mindset—your thought-patterns—is to focus the right ideas.
Romans, in all its depth and complexity, is exactly the kind of thing that can transform your mindset, if you are willing to put in the work and seek to first understand and then to think about what Paul is saying. We are going to take the next several months and work through this life-changing letter bit by bit.
Be consistent.
Be curious.
If you do those things:
1. You will understand both what Paul is saying and why the early church was unstoppable;
2. You will be different because you’ll see the world and your place in it according to God’s point of view.
Let’s GO.
Andrew Forrest
Sunday, September 1
Romans 1:1-7
1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, 2 which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3 concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh 4 and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, 5 through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, 6 including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ, 7 To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul begins his letter with a long “From” section. He has never been to Rome and didn’t found the Roman church, so he lays out his credentials and summarizes the Gospel while he’s at it.
The Gospel:
• Was predicted and promised in the Old Testament;
• Was about God’s Son, Jesus, who was an Israelite, descended from King David;
• Jesus was proved to be God’s Son by the Resurrection, when the Holy Spirit raised Him from the dead.
Paul is an apostle of Messiah Jesus. (“Messiah” is a Hebrew title; “Christ” is a Greek title—both words mean the same thing: “Anointed One.”) This Jesus was the one to whom the entire Old Testament was pointing; He was born to a Jewish family and then raised from the dead. Paul’s whole mission is to tell people about this Jesus so that they will trust Jesus with their lives, because what God has done in Jesus is going to fix everything that’s wrong with the world.
Paul is writing to the Roman Christians, who, though they come from different backgrounds, are now the “holy ones” (that’s what the word “saints” means).
Do Not Conform. Be Transformed.
Paul begins his great letter by explaining that God’s plan to save the whole world has been at work for centuries, leading up to the Resurrection of Jesus. Think of all that happened in those long centuries—wars and emperors and pyramids and exile—and all the while God was at work.
It’s very easy to believe that the headlines tell the whole story, but they don’t.
Be encouraged: God is at work today!
TONIGHT - Romans Kickoff Bible Study
I will be preaching and leading a study at Asbury through Paul’s Letter to the Romans all fall. The kickoff Bible study is TONIGHT (8/28) in the Asbury Sanctuary, 6:30-8:00 PM. Going to be out of town? First of all, cancel your plans. Secondly, the study will be live-streamed.
Dinner is available beforehand starting at 5:00 PM.
Asbury is a Bible-reading church. Reading and loving the Bible is a central goal and value for us, because reading the Bible will change your life.
In Romans 12:1-2, Paul says that if want to know God’s will for our lives, we need to have our minds transformed:
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.[12:2]
We are all affected by ideas, and the way to transform your mindset—your thought-patterns—is to focus the right ideas.
Romans, in all its depth and complexity, is exactly the kind of thing that can transform your mindset, if you are willing to put in the work and seek to first understand and then to think about what Paul is saying.
So, as I mentioned above, this fall we will be reading through Romans as a church at Asbury. I’ve put together a reading plan that parcels out a small amount of reading for each day, Monday - Friday (though our reading plan STARTS on this Sunday—don’t miss that!); each day there is that day’s Scripture reading, and then I’ve written some commentary to help you get the most out of your reading. What I am calling Romans Part 1 will cover chapters 1-7 and will take us through the month of September.
This is going to be good.
Pick up your Romans book at Asbury this weekend so you can start with us on September 1. Readings start on SUNDAY this week!
Live out of town? Email Sandie Tomlinson, and she’ll mail you a copy;
If you live in Dallas, email Sandie and she’ll tell you how you can pick yours up for yourself there in town.
Each day’s reading is posted here at 3:30 AM, and if you are on my Bible mailing list, it will be emailed to you at 4:30 AM (Central Time).
I Need You To Circle These Dates On Your Calendar
Friends, I hope you have been blessed by our Summer Of Prayer. The Spirit is moving, testimonies continue to come in, and we are pumped to dive into Romans in a few weeks. You need to circle this date on the calendar:
Sunday, September 1.
That’s the day our Romans reading plan begins.
It’s not an overstatement to say that the Apostle Paul’s Letter to the Romans is the most influential letter ever written; we are going to be reading and studying it all fall at Asbury.
Reading Romans will change your life, and I want to challenge you now to make the commitment to start with us on Day One.
Whether you will be in the pew or out of town on that Sunday, circle 9/1 in your calendar and commit to completing that first day’s reading.
Lots more info to follow, but I wanted to get that date out to you.
To get the most out of our reading of Romans, we’ll have an all-church Bible study on Wednesday, 8/28, 6:30-8:00 PM in the Sanctuary.
Dinner available beforehand, 5:00-6:30 PM.
We have only three Bible studies scheduled for this fall, so clear your calendar now and plan to join us on:
August 28, October 2, and October 30
These Bible studies have become important for our church—don’t miss!